


Two Days a Pawn

by KirbyChan, Tristan_ATK



Category: Chzo Mythos, Mystery Skulls (Band), Mystery Skulls Animated
Genre: Character Death, F/M, graphic nightmares, shit goes sour really fast
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-10
Updated: 2017-04-07
Packaged: 2018-08-07 22:26:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7732078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KirbyChan/pseuds/KirbyChan, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tristan_ATK/pseuds/Tristan_ATK
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>'3. The Truth of our realm is one that must always be kept in our hearts. Our realm and the men of technology are not Pure; imperfect and corrupt in a near-neverending loop of destruction. Our realm ruins itself, and the only form of Purity is pain. This pain is a link to the King, who presides over us and shall one day free us, remaking the realm as it is meant to be, and covering the old until it is unseen and forgotten.'</i>
</p>
<p>A simple enough case suddenly turns ten times worse when Lewis is captured by a cult that relishes in pain. Now, with the help of a new friend, the rest of the Mystery Skulls have to rescue him, uncover the secrets of this sadistic cult, and escape as quickly as possible.</p>
<p>That is, if they can stay alive to do it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Kirby: Alright, so this is yet another rp-turned-story that Tristan and I have written together. This one has been very long in the making and is one of my favorite things I've ever had the pleasure of being a part of. 
> 
> If any of you have played the game "6 Days a Sacrifice" (which, let's be honest, is none of you :P ), then this will look very familiar. So fair warning, if you haven't played the game and would like to at some point, there are spoilers here.
> 
> Mystery Skulls Animated © Ben Mangum  
> Chzo Mythos © Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw

Cases like this weren’t anything new, though the insane group of people they were tracking down this time were nowhere to be found. Each of them had split up to search a different part of the building but Vivi was having absolutely no luck on her end. She huffed in annoyance, moving to meet back up with everyone at the rendezvous point.

Her loyal dog was already there and Mystery perked up immediately when he saw her. He looked like he had the same amount of luck she had. Figures.

A few more minutes passed and Vivi offered the third member of their group a smile once Arthur turned the corner. “Hey Artie. Any luck?”

Arthur sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry Vivi. I went down the halls a few times, and I couldn’t seem to find anything. Are you sure they’re hiding out here? Maybe they got out before we found them or something….”

She blew a tuft of hair out of her face. “Yeah, probably,” Vivi replied bitterly. “I don’t know how these guys keep giving us the slip. You’d think we would’ve found them by now. This place isn’t very big.”

Arthur patted her shoulder and smiled. “Don’t worry too much, Vi. I’m sure we’ll find them before they can cause too much damage or anything. I mean, with you looking for them, there’s no way they’ll get away. When you want to find something, you find it. And you don’t let anything get in your way.”

His attempt to cheer her up did earn him a smile from Vivi though she still didn’t look very pleased. They still didn’t know who these people were or what in the world they were up to. It was maddening. “Wonder if Lew’s having better luck than we are.”

Arthur paused and glanced down the pathway Lewis had taken. “Yeah, maybe…shouldn’t he be back by now or something? I mean, he can handle himself and he is a ghost, but…” He trailed off, a slightly worried look on his face.

“Oh you know how he is,” Vivi replied with a nonchalant wave of her hand. She wasn’t worried at all. “Gotta look under every speck of dust. He’ll be back as soon as he realizes he’s worried about us, which shouldn’t be too long.” She grinned jokingly as she brought Arthur down to sit next to her and Mystery. He let himself be seated next to them nervously.

“I guess…” He glanced down the hall Lewis had taken one more time as he gripped lightly at his metal wrist. After a moment he shook his head. “I’m sure you’re right. I just worry, is all.”

“I just wish I knew what kind of books they stole, y’know? The store they stole from wasn’t exactly the best with giving us useful info.” The bitterness was evident in her voice. How could someone who sells books not know what they were about? Disgraceful! “Can’t be anything good at least.”

He frowned a little in response. “Yeah. I know I don’t read as much as _you.”_ He grinned a little and nudged her shoulder lightly with his own. “…but even if they didn’t know what was in the book, you’d think they’d at least have some kind of property list or- or _something,_ so we’d at least know what to look for. I mean, if we had the names of the books we could at least google them or something.”

“I heard nobody ever goes in that section of the bookstore.” Vivi shrugged. “Dumbass excuse but maybe this’ll teach them to take better care of what they sell.” Obviously someone was rather sore. But she nudged Arthur back all the same.

Arthur nodded before smiling at her when she returned the nudge. “Definitely not a good way to do business, that’s for sure. You should show them how to do run things properly, like at Tome Tomb.”

“I know, right?” With a small giggle, Vivi continued. “And anyway, it’s probably a good thing you don’t read as much as me. You already stay up late as it is. If you got lost in a good book, you probably wouldn’t sleep for days.” She could just picture it, Arthur enjoying a book so much that he forgets to eat and sleep. _Again._

Arthur shrugged in response. “I could always sleep until the sequel came out or something. But I guess it is a good thing it’s hard to get my interest with a book, huh?” He wasn’t going to deny what she said. They all knew about his terrible sleep habits. He wasn’t really about to tell them _why_ he had them, and that didn’t really matter anyway. He was more worried about Lewis…

And of course Vivi noticed. She smiled and put her hand over his flesh one. “Don’t be such a worrywart, Artie. If it makes you feel any better, I could always call him.”

“I dunno.” He frowned and scratched his chin. “You’re usually right, Vivi. He’s probably just taking his time. I just…don’t like it. This place is creepy, and we’re following crazy people. It’s not a great combination.”

“True enough. What cult isn’t crazy though?” Taking out her phone, Vivi shot her boyfriend a quick text anyway. “We probably should be getting out of here anyway.” It was late and the two of them did have to work their “actual” jobs in the morning.

A few minutes passed and Vivi frowned at the lack of a response from their wayward ghost. “Did he screw up his phone again?” It wouldn’t be the first time and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Vivi was just thankful Arthur was so understanding about fixing those phones all the time.

But now she was starting to get worried herself. Lewis was taking way too long. “Maybe he got sidetracked. I’ll go look for him. You stay here with Mystery in case he comes back, okay?”

Arthur frowned. “N-no way. You shouldn’t go alone.” He stood quickly and grabbed her hand, though it was just as much to reassure her as it was for him. His mind was already running all the worst-case scenarios, and the idea of another friend leaving and possibly not coming back was…upsetting to say the least.

He shook his head to clear his mind of those thoughts and looked Vivi in the eyes. “If he’s fine, then we’ll find him together. If he isn’t, then we’ll figure out something, but at least we’ll both know. It’s better if we don’t split up. And this is the rendezvous spot anyway. If we can’t find him, he’ll probably come back here anyway.”

“Agreed.” Mystery was suddenly wide awake and by their sides. None of them were taking no for an answer.

Not that Vivi was complaining. “Alright, alright. I guess it would be better to go together. Hopefully this won’t end on all of us going around in circles like with that one poltergeist.” She giggled at the memory.

But soon her eyes peered down to Arthur’s hand holding hers. The blue beauty grinned as she began to pull the mechanic along. “Geez Arthur, if you wanted to hold my hand, all you had to do was ask.”

Arthur’s own chuckle at the memory she had brought up quickly morphed into an anxious splutter. His cheeks began to turn red, and he quickly pulled his hand back from Vivi and wiped at his face with it. He couldn’t stop himself from laughing nervously, and when he tried to respond the words came out all once. “Iwasn’teventhinkingaboutthatorhowsoftyourhandis! I swear!” He walked quicker to keep pace with her, but he seemed to be studying the walls rather intently as he ran a hand through his hair.

Mystery made a noise that suspiciously sounded like a laugh. A little raspy but there was little mistaking it on what it was. Arthur glanced at the him and his eyes narrowed when he heard the laugh. He huffed in response. “Traitor. She’ll probably come for you next.”

But Vivi reached over to grasp both his hands again. “I didn’t say you needed to let go~” She chirped happily and resumed pulling him along. The metal one felt exactly as she figured it would. A little cold but the craftsmanship was so _Arthur_ and perfect. The flesh one was surprisingly soft but still a little rugged from handling all those power tools. Yep. This was Arthur alright.

Arthur let out a startled squawk, however, when Vivi grabbed both his hands and towed him along. He tried to stutter out a response, but nothing came to mind and after a few minutes (and many failed attempts at a retort), he fell silent and did his best to keep up with her long strides.

Vivi was really adorable when she was in the zone, and feeling her hand in his real one was just… nice. It was soft and delicate and warm, which seemed impossible with how nasty a punch she packed when angry. But that was Vivi for you. Tough and sweet. Beautiful and terrifying. She was like steel wrapped in silk, and she-

-wasn’t his.

Arthur shook his head. He shouldn’t be thinking about her that way. Either of them. Lewis and Vivi had each other now that the ghost was back. He was their friend and that was it. And he was okay with that.

…really.

She gave him a break and dropped the hold to just his flesh hand, Vivi refusing to let go this time, as they continued on. But the longer they searched, the more worried Vivi became, even if she tried not to let it show.

“Lewis?” She called out for the umpteenth time. Where in the world had he gone…?


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur called out a few times with Vivi, but his anxiety continued to climb as time stretched on. He ran a hand through his hair. “Mystery, can you pick up his trail or anything? I mean if he came this way there’d probably be some residue of his aura or something, right?” He wasn’t sure how the whole tracking thing worked for a kitsune, but anything was worth a shot to find Lewis at this point. Vivi was good at hiding how she felt, but Arthur knew her well enough to see the signs of distress. He tried squeezing her hand comfortingly.

Mystery had been eerily silent once they really started moving, not even bothering to answer Arthur’s question. A few times he pressed his nose to the floor to sniff around but nothing…until they reached the last room they hadn’t checked. “Just as I feared…he isn’t here.”

Vivi swore the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees just from those words alone. “What…?” As talented as she was at hiding her panic, it was starting to slip. “Not here? Where did he go?”

The cult wasn’t here. Lewis wasn’t here. Normally Vivi hated thinking in negatives but the last time Lewis disappeared on them, he had…

Well…

Her grip on Arthur’s hand tightened as well. “D-did…did he find them and chase after them, maybe…?”

Mystery shook his head. “He did not come this far in this direction. I wasn’t sure…but as I said, he isn’t here.”

Arthur could feel how tight Vivi’s grip was becoming. He grabbed both of Vivi’s shoulders and looked her in the eyes. He tried to swallow his own fear: Vivi was stronger than him, but if she needed support, then he’d willingly push aside his own worry to give it to her. “Vivi. It’s gonna be okay. You know why? We have a world-class tracker with us, and you’re the best paranormal investigator the world has ever seen. Now we have to find a ghost. One that is no doubt trying to find his way back to you.” Again. Arthur was suddenly struck with déjà vu. “Everything will be okay. We know we were all at that intersection, right? We’ll just backtrack and find where Mystery can last sense him or something. He’s gotta be around here somewhere, okay?”

At first Vivi was stunned. Arthur almost never looked her straight in the eyes anymore, at least not for this long. Usually he would turn away after a few seconds, or stare at the ground while having a death grip on his metal arm… She had to admit, it was nice. Now hopefully he could keep that up.

Smiling, Vivi wiped away the sting in her eyes before any water could escape. “The best in the world, huh…?” She replied and gripped both of Arthur’s hands on her shoulders. “Gosh Artie, you sure know how to flatter a girl.”

“Excuse you.”

The playful grin was back. “And Mystery.” That seemed to somewhat satisfy the not!dog. 

Arthur smiled at her a little. “The best of the best, Vivi. Never forget it.” The grin widened as he listened to them go back and forth.

“But you’re right. We gotta retrace our steps even more. He’ll…he’ll be okay.” She gave Arthur’s hands a little pat. “And hey. Don’t sell yourself short now. He’s trying to find his way back to you too.” When she patted his hands and spoke, Arthur dropped his arms back to his sides and rolled his shoulders a little. He didn’t reply for a few seconds. 

Finally, he cleared his throat. “C-come on. Let’s see how far back we have to go before Mystery can pick him up. Lewis will be fine, and we’ll find him. He’s can’t have gone too far…”

Arthur was right. Once they returned to the intersection, they didn’t have to search long before Mystery caught something. When it came to spirits, he was the best tracker around. And he would recognize this “scent” anywhere. Without warning he dashed off in the direction of the exit.

Vivi didn’t miss a beat. She grabbed Arthur’s hand once again before chasing after her dog. The closer they got to the exit, the more all of them began to see clear signs of a struggle. Okay, now she was starting to panic again.

Finally Mystery stopped at the small clearing before the door but still no Lewis in sight. Instead, there was a lone Deadbeat left behind in the scuffle…curled up, writhing, as if somehow in pain.

Arthur ran up to the spirit, letting go of Vivi’s hand to check the Deadbeat for any signs of injury. It didn’t look like there was any damage, but the little ghost still flailed weakly in beneath his hands. “Are you okay? What’s wrong? Where’s Lewis?”

He didn’t really expect it to answer. It wasn’t as if they could speak English. It let out a pained chirp and he stroked its head gently as he muttered, “It’ll be okay. It has to.”

Arthur looked up at Mystery and frowned. “Can you tell us anything? What could have happened?”

The dog-not-dog lifted his muzzle into the air and inhaled deeply. After a moment he turned towards Vivi and Arthur. “Someone has been using spell-craft here recently. There is magic in the air.”

How strange. There weren’t any actual “injuries” on the little ghost and yet it still seemed to be in pain. Mystery stood back and watched while Vivi made her way over and knelt next to Arthur to try and soothe the distraught spirit. “So the thieves _were_ here then.” She’d been right, yet they escaped.

And with the way things were looking…with Lewis as well. Her heart sunk. If they were powerful enough to capture a ghost, then…

But what in the world did they need him for? Why capture a ghost?

“Can you take us to Lewis?” Vivi gently asked the wounded Deadbeat, rubbing the side of its face. If anyone would know where Lewis was, it would be this little guy. The purple ghost looked up and nodded, determined. It floated out of Arthur’s arms, fully intent on showing there where its master was…but collapsed after just a few feet.

That wasn’t good. The Deadbeats were tied directly to Lewis’ energy. If they were drained… Mystery had a feeling Lewis was in worse danger than he originally thought. He frowned. “We should find Lewis quickly. He will need our help if his energy has been sapped like this spirit has…”

Arthur’s grip on his prosthetic was so tight that the knuckles of his real hand had turned white. This wasn’t good at all. Was it getting harder to breathe?

He tried to take steady breaths. Vivi needed him. He can’t panic.

Forcibly separating his arms from one another, He stood and wiped his hands on his pants to hide how they were trembling. 

“Okay-” He cut off and winced internally at how high and shaky his voice sounded. He cleared his throat and forced it to steady and drop down a few octaves. “..Okay. They c-can’t have gone far. We can still catch them.” 

_Don’t panic._

He made his way to the fallen Deadbeat and looked at Mystery as he thought, worrying his lip with his teeth. After a few moments he spoke. “M-maybe it can’t lead us to where he is or anything, but it can point us in the right direction, right? It’s connected to Lewis. Could- could we supplement the energy it lost somehow? Or…or maybe it could possess something and act like Lewis’s heart does where it leads him to who he’s looking for? It could use Vivi’s glasses… O-or m-my a-arm. Something.” The idea of something in his arm made his heart constrict, but anything to get Lewis back. He couldn’t lose him again.

He trailed off and yanked at his hair. **DON’T. PANIC.** “I-I don’t know. I’m usually the one who this happens to. I don’t know what to do. H-how do you guys usually fix this?”

Arthur felt a tiny nubby hand pat his knee. The Deadbeat looked up at him with tired and sad eyes. It knew how scared Arthur was about being possessed. It would never do such a thing to him. The little ghost tried to get this across with a weak burble. The panicked flurry of thoughts stilled somewhat at the little ghost’s actions and Arthur pet it gently for a moment.

It made Vivi smile. She put her hand on Arthur’s shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. “Breathe, Arthur.” Even though she was worried as well, she couldn’t have her best friend falling apart on her too. They both had to be strong here. For the both of them, and for Lewis. 

Vivi’s hand on his shoulder made him tense for a moment before he relaxed. “I’m breathing. I’m okay.” He open and closed one hand in a steady rhythm, using it as a baseline for each breath, just to be sure.

Everyone waited a few moments for Arthur to calm down before Vivi spoke up again. “They can’t have gotten far. They might even still be here, just in some place we can’t find…” She turned towards Mystery. “Can you give this little guy some energy?”

The not-dog nodded, going over and nudging the tiny ghost with his nose. The Deadbeat whined and clung to Mystery like a lifeline. And as he began to help the tiny ghost, the feeling of dread only increased.

This was going to be a very long night.


	3. Chapter 3

Arthur stood as Mystery began to help the Deadbeat. He took one more deep breath and smiled at his friend, though he still felt somewhat shaky. “We didn’t know if he’s not here. W-we weren’t looking for trouble before. Maybe we can find some kind of hint if we look around a little more in-depth or something. T-there was obviously a struggle…maybe there’s something here that’ll give us a lead on where to go while Mystery helps that guy out.” Arthur wiped his hands on his pants again and turned to survey the room.

The Deadbeat curled up next to Mystery, regaining its energy bit by bit. Meanwhile, Vivi took Arthur’s lead this time to search around the struggle. Burn marks all over the place… How had they not heard anything? And there were even more pressing questions nagging at her.

“I don’t get it…” Vivi mused to herself as she continued to search around. “Why Lewis? It couldn’t have been easy to trap a ghost like him, a-and they couldn’t have known we were coming here…” Could they?

Brushing her hand against the wall to get rid of some of the ash, she paused as she saw something. Vivi quickly brushed the rest of it away and was met with a strange symbol; a square with four triangles on each side of it, and the entire thing was put inside of a large circle.

“What’s this? Some sorta weird not-pentagram?” Whoever drew it was really screwed up. It didn’t look familiar, at least not to her, and she was pretty sure she didn’t want to know what red liquid they used to paint this. But as soon as the Deadbeat laid its eyes on the symbol, it hissed and grew in size, teeth sharpening. “Whoa…what’s with the little guy?”

Mystery didn’t answer. He was staring at the symbol as well. And he looked slightly horrified. “Mystery…?” Vivi looked to Arthur, then to the symbol, then back to her dog. “What’s wrong?”

“That…” He swallowed nervously. “I believe Lewis may be in bigger trouble than we thought… That is the mark of the Order of the Blessed Agonies.”

“B-blessed Agonies?” Arthur shivered. Anything with a synonym to pain in its name could never be good. “S-so you’ve heard of the cult we’re following…?”

Mystery nodded once, though his eyes never left the symbol on the wall. “I do not know the whole history of the order, but it was started by a man named Jack Frehorn to serve an elemental of pain, who resides on an alternate plane of reality than ours. There are several books written that detail prophecies and the story of “the King” and of a once-man who served him called “the Prince”…” He trailed off and his tail twitched in agitation. “Nothing good can come from them if they have something planned. If the Order of the Blessed Agonies has taken Lewis, then we should hasten to find him.”

Arthur nodded before a thought occurred to him. “You said there were books written on this…king, or whatever. Do you think those were what were stolen from the store?”

Mystery looked grim. “Most likely. How that store got its hands on those books, let alone let it be handled in such a careless manner, I will never know.” Nor did he really wish to know, otherwise he might forsake his vow to never speak and transform in front of humans that didn’t already know. “I was under the impression the cult had all of the books. Perhaps some of them went missing through time.”

He stood up and looked to the Deadbeat curled around him and still hissing at the mark. “I know you are angry, but if we’re going to save your master then we need your help. You have enough energy now. Where is Lewis?”

Whimpering softly, the Deadbeat shrunk back to its normal size and pointed with a nubby hand down a hallway. They couldn’t understand it, but at least the little ghost could show them the way. Mystery trotted ahead to the appointed direction, Arthur and Vivi following close behind.

Vivi’s mind was reeling. If the books taken from the store were prophetic books, then maybe it wasn’t a huge stretch to assume that they’d know they’d be here…lying in wait for them to come and investigate. But that didn’t answer the main burning question. “I still don’t understand though…” she spoke up after a while of silence. “Why Lewis? He’s a ghost… How would he be able to help them in serving this king-whatever-thing?”

Mystery paused as he thought about it himself. “I…don’t know.”

“You don’t _know?”_

“I haven’t read the books myself so I have no idea what is written in them. The Order of the Blessed Agonies believe in enlightenment through the worst kind of pain imaginable; through all aspects of a human: body, mind, and soul. But as you said…Lewis is a ghost. I don’t know what they would want with him.”

Arthur frowned. “Well if they believe that pain is enlightenment, maybe they try to use ghosts? I mean, dying has to hurt, and Lewis…” Arthur ducked his head for a moment. “…Well, his was pretty violent. And at the mansion I broke his anchor, which had to be fairly agonizing too. Could they want to channel that pain or something…?” He sighed a little and ran a hand through his hair. He wasn’t great with all the abstractions that came with supernatural rituals, cults or creatures. That was Vivi’s forte, and even Mystery and Lewis were better when it came to understanding it than he was, being supernatural beings themselves. He was floundering for answers and he knew it.

His hand twitched towards Vivi’s for a moment again, but he stopped himself. They had enough to worry about with Lewis missing. He didn’t need to make her feel awkward by hanging on her just because it’d make him feel better. 

But instead of his hand, Vivi put a hand on Arthur’s shoulder, giving it a little squeeze. “Artie, how many times do we have to say it? You didn’t break Lew’s anchor.” If anything, _she_ broke it because she wasn’t fast enough to catch it. Arthur was just doing what any sane person would do: getting his friend out of the way of a very angry ghost. But she didn’t voice this, knowing Arthur would find a way to turn the blame on himself. Again. Her hand slid down to once again grasp his. She didn’t mind. She needed comfort too.

Arthur didn’t respond. It really didn’t make sense why no one blamed him. If he had just tried to talk to Lewis instead of _running away…_

Lewis had been angry, but he was still Lewis. Maybe, maybe he would have gotten a few burns or something from the ghost, but it would’ve been worth it if that meant Lewis didn’t end up getting hurt. But now it was his fault. If he wasn’t such a coward then-

The hand slipping into his own dragged his thoughts away from their current trajectory, and he squeezed it tightly for a moment. Lewis needed them. He had to focus on that. There’d be plenty of time to think about everything he could’ve done right later.

“His anchor…” Mystery paused, deep in thought.

“What’s wrong, Mystery?” Oh what _now?_ Vivi didn’t think she could take another huge bombshell.

“Nothing. Just…I was thinking. That could very well be how they captured him. After all…” He turned his head to look at the weakened Deadbeat sadly. “Control the anchor, and you control the ghost.” And as damaged as it was, it would be so simple to control Lewis once they got their hands on it. “Perhaps they mean to harness his pain somehow, as Arthur said. Or perhaps they mean to use him to cause more pain.”

“O-okay. If that’s true, and that’s how they caught Lewis, then that’s what we need to get. They can’t hurt or kill or use Lewis or anything like that if we have his anchor, right? So we need to find them and get it back somehow, hopefully without any Order of the Blessed Agonies crazies noticing us. But I guess we need to find them first, and figure out a plan…” Arthur set his jaw and tried to pick up the pace. He wouldn’t act too late to save Lewis.

Not this time.


	4. Chapter 4

It was tough to say how long the four of them were searching. Time didn’t seem to even flow in this place, or was that just their imagination? There was a strange air around here, one that Mystery felt was getting thicker and thicker the deeper they got.

Finally the tiny purple ghost leapt from Mystery’s shoulders and flopped down onto the cold floor, pawing at the tiles. It chirped frantically a few times before turning to its helpers.

“Is Lewis right below us?” Vivi asked and the Deadbeat nodded. It could get to Lewis easily but the same couldn’t be said for the creatures that couldn’t phase through walls and floors. “Then we need to find some stairs or an elevator or something…”

“I haven’t seen any stairs in this place.” Mystery scoffed. He wouldn’t put it past these crazies to not put stairs in here. That would only offer an escape route to any poor souls they managed to catch. Elevators were easier to control who goes in and out, and there had to be some way to get down there. “Is there an elevator around here?”

“If there is, we’ll find it.” Despite his trembling hands, Arthur’s voice was steady as he gave a nod in affirmation. With the four of them searching, it was only a matter of time.

It didn’t take as long as he thought it would to find the elevator. A cursory inspection of the nearby area led them right to it. There was no buttons to call the elevator, so Arthur and Mystery forced the door open. Absently, Arthur wondered at how strange it was that no one was here to guard the door, and how quickly they had found and accessed the door. This almost seemed too easy.

Of course, that thought was proven to be wrong the moment the door was forced completely open. 

It was pitch black in the shaft, and he could barely see the far wall inside the doors. Any light filtering in from the newly opened doors seemed to be swallowed in the darkness the further down the shaft it went. 

Holding onto the door for balance, Arthur leaned forward and stared down into the black. “I can’t see the bottom…but I have a feeling it’d be a long drop…” He trailed off before scanning the shaft for any signs of the elevator. “I don’t see a cable for an elevator in here either.” How did they expect anyone to get down there? Maybe the cable was farther in and he couldn’t see it. Or the elevator was on an upper floor. Either way, it didn’t look like they’d be riding in the elevator to get to the lower levels of this place.

Running a hand through his hair, Arthur glanced at the others. “Do you think we have any rope in those bags we packed for the case? Or some magic slow-fall style spell? If not, we might be able to climb down. There’s probably some handholds, but the other way would be a bit quicker…and safer.” He let out a nervous chuckle.

“Well…” Vivi dug through her bag. “I did pack a rope. But…” Carefully she then walked over to the empty elevator shaft and peered downward into the darkness. Just like Arthur said, there was no sign of the bottom. “I don’t know how far this thing goes, or if this is enough to get to where Lewis is.” She had a hunch he’d be on the last floor.

Someone had to test it out, or at least get far enough in there to see if there were any cables to climb down with. “How about…”

Vivi stopped herself. How could she even begin to think asking anyone else to do this job? Mystery could probably find some way to hold onto the rope but Vivi didn’t want to risk it. And Arthur…it was obvious he was scared. And she didn’t want to make that even worse. She was already a horrible friend before Lewis’ death, forgetting to bring Arthur along and making him do things he didn’t want to.

Never again.

“I’ll go down and see how far it goes,” she explained while looking around to find something to tie the rope onto.

“What?” Mystery was startled. “Vivi, you can’t go down there by yourself! What if you fall?”

Vivi didn’t even want to think about that. If nothing else she’d know somewhat what Lewis had to go through. “I’ll take the Deadbeat with me. It can tell me which floor Lew’s on, if the rope goes that far.”

But she was quickly stopped by a metal hand over her’s. “Vivi, no.” Arthur shook his head before taking some of the rope into his own hand to keep her from being stubborn and continuing to tie it. “It’d be better if _I_ went.”

He held up his free hand to quell any protests. “AND before you argue with me, think about it this way: you and Mystery are both stronger than me, so if whoever went down there needed someone to pull them up quickly, it’d be better if it was you two up here. Plus I weigh like, next to nothing. And it’ll be easier for me to hold on to the rope than you because-” He raised his prosthetic hand and waved it a little with a small smile. “-you could say I’ve got a grip of _iron.”_

He chuckled tightly for a moment. “My arm can’t get tired of holding on, since I can’t actually feel with it. And it can’t get rope-burns either. If I needed to, I could hold on for…well, a very long time. Which means a slimmer chance of me falling, too. So out of the two of us, there’s really not a good reason for you to go down instead of me. I’ll take the Deadbeat and see how far down we can get.”

He knew she’d probably be able to tell, considering how intuitive Vivi was, but he also didn’t want her to get hurt. If somebody had to go down the creepy elevator shaft that could possibly be dangerous, he’d much rather go first, at least.

Vivi frowned. She didn’t like this one bit but she couldn’t deny Arthur was right. That didn’t make it any easier for her to accept. “Artie…” She watched as Arthur secured the rope and walked over to the edge of the elevator. A feeling of dread overtook her for a second. If something happened…she’d have lost both her boys in the exact same way.

Quickly she took Arthur’s hand that didn’t have the rope and gripped it tightly. “Just…be careful, okay?” She wasn’t going to argue, not with Lewis in so much danger, but she’d never forgive herself if Arthur got hurt…or worse.

She gave the hand a squeeze before letting go and going over to the Deadbeat. It looked much better than before. Vivi picked the tiny ghost up and smiled. “Take care of him for us. Make sure he doesn’t get hurt.” The Deadbeat nodded and flew over to curl itself around Arthur’s shoulders. “And be his light for him, would you? He’ll need to see.” As if responding, the little golden heart on the ghost’s chest glowed brightly. It would have to do since Arthur needed both his hands to climb.

Mystery sat vigilantly at the knot where the rope was tied to make sure it didn’t come undone as Arthur lowered himself into the gaping void. “You’d better come back safely Arthur!” Vivi yelled down at him. “You hear me?!”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kirby: This is one of my favorite parts of the whole fic :D

“Loud and clear, Vivi! If I tug on the rope three times really hard, that means I need you to pull me up as quickly as you can manage, alright?” Arthur called back up to her before slowly rappelling down the side of the shaft. Really, he hadn’t been exaggerating: having the metallic arm was a huge benefit. It slid easily along the rope, and it didn’t sting when the hemp moved through his fingers like it did for his flesh hand. 

The almost completely darkness -aside from the soft yellow glow of the deadbeat’s heart- actually made the trip somewhat easier. He never was a fan of heights, but when it was nearly pitch black, it was hard to tell how far away the bottom was. He could keep pretending it was only a few feet below him, which made the whole process much easier. The only thing he didn’t do was look back up. Seeing the steadily shrinking window of light from the open doors only made it feel more like falling in slow motion, and that thought made him think of how Lewis felt when he was falling. Keeping his eyes trained for any cables or doors to get inside to where Lewis might be was a much better use of his time.

“Alright, buddy.” Arthur addressed the Deadbeat by holding onto the rope with one hand and patting its body somewhat awkwardly with the other. “Just let me know if we’re getting close.” Hopefully the line would be long enough, but who knew how far down this chute went?

Even with the light, it still wasn’t enough to see any kind of cable in the shaft. There had to be one here, how else could the elevator work? Besides the fact it couldn’t be called the normal way. Whoever designed this place was completely screwed up in the head. It made sense, considering what sick cult they were dealing with.

The Deadbeat gave a few frightened whimpers now and then with their descent. Whether it was scared itself or reflecting how its master felt was unknown but it didn’t matter. With Lewis on the line, it didn’t matter what they had to do. They couldn’t lose him again. 

Arthur didn’t like that the Deadbeat seemed scared. It made his stomach flip that the little ghost might be scared…or Lewis was, and there was no one around to help him. The very thought made him grip the rope in his hands even tighter.

It felt like they were climbing down forever and the Deadbeat still gave no sign that Lewis was near. Even when Arthur had, quite literally, reached the end of his rope. 

He looked around with a mild hope that they’d gone far enough, but with no response from the Deadbeat and a definite lack of any doors or cables, it looked like he was out of luck. He hung there for a few moments, trying to think of something, anything he could do at this point to keep going. He hated the idea of returning to Vivi and Mystery empty-handed.

But unlike Arthur, his little ghostly companion could see in the dark. Its eyes brightened a little and it flew down a few feet before being swallowed up by the darkness. Deep in thought, Arthur was surprised by the sudden movement of the small ghost on his shoulders, and he watched with hope that the Deadbeat had some semblance of a plan as it disappeared into the shadow. He was a still little bit nervous at being left alone in the pitch-black darkness, and he watched where it disappeared anxiously.

When the small spirit returned, he breathed a sigh in relief, and from how excited the ghost seemed by something, his hopes only rose higher. He wasn’t entirely sure what had caused the change in the Deadbeat’s demeanor, but maybe they were close to the ground floor?

Without warning, the Deadbeat grew in size and tugged on the back of Arthur’s vest to the point where the mechanic was no longer on the side of the wall. They weren’t very strong, at least not by themselves, but one Deadbeat could at least hold up Arthur long enough to slow the slight fall down to where they needed to be. And Arthur was right, he really didn’t weigh anything.

Arthur gave a small yelp when the ghost tugged him away from the wall, his feet dangling below him and over the black. For a few moments he held onto the rope like it was a lifeline from falling, but the Deadbeat seemed to by trying to slow his decent, and it was an extension of Lewis, right? He’d trust Lewis with his life, so why not another part of him? 

Clenching his teeth, Arthur released the rope and let them drift slightly faster further down the shaft. He hoped the sudden slack on the line wouldn’t worry Vivi and Mystery. Arthur kept his eyes glued downwards and tried to keep his worries in check. The ghost seemed to have a solid grip on his vest, and hopefully they were near the bottom or something, and this sensation of falling would be over soon.

His shoulders sagged in relief from their previously tense posture as a metallic flooring came into view and he let himself droop a little when his feet touched the solid surface beneath him. He sighed for a moment before turning a smile on the little ghost. “Thanks, little guy.”

Tapping his foot against the floor, he could hear the echo of metal. Was this the elevator? With the limited light, he felt around almost blindly, but he smiled as his hand came into contact with a thick, rubber-coated cable. This might make things easier.

Glancing around at the ground, Arthur began to hunt for a hatch. There was usually one to get in and out of an elevator from the inside. Maybe he could slip in and rig the thing to go to the surface. It’d be a lot easier to do that then to let the others climb down on a rope, especially since not everyone on their team had opposable thumbs…

Sliding onto his knees to stay closer to the ground, Arthur mentioned at the Deadbeat. “Okay. You’ve done great so far. We need to find a hatch or something to get inside if you can. Maybe you can check the inside by phasing your head in too. It might be good to know if there are any cultist guys guarding the inside before I go making a lot of noise…”

The Deadbeat nodded at Arthur’s instructions and looked around too for the hatch. Easy enough to spot and it moved its light over to Arthur could see with a little burble.

Now came the second part. It waited to make sure Arthur knew where the hatch was before peeking its head through the ceiling and into the elevator itself. Nobody there. That was a good sign right? Just for good measure, the purple ghost flew over to the double doors and peeked its head out there too. Still nobody. No red robes, no guards…nothing.

In the meantime, Arthur made his way to the hatch as the Deadbeat slipped its head through. It looked like it had one of those twist-lever handles, and once the little ghost had returned and seemed to give him the all-clear by tugging on his vest, he nodded and began twisting the handle, grunting a little at the effort.

This…almost seemed too easy. Of course he wouldn’t call climbing down an elevator shaft easy but with the apparent lack of resistance, Arthur couldn’t help but feel like they were missing something. But until they found Lewis, Arthur wouldn’t lower his guard. Not for a second.


	6. Chapter 6

“Vivi, stop pacing.”

She huffed and crossed her arms. “I can’t help it, okay? I’m worried.”

“I know you are but you’re only working yourself up more. Arthur will be fine.”

Vivi didn’t look so convinced. Her best friend had been down there for a really long time. The rope was still moving around now and then so at least that was a sign Arthur was still there and okay.

And yet as soon as she thought that, the rope went slack. Vivi paled. “Arthur!” She dashed to the darkened shaft. There hadn’t been any scream from him as far as they heard but that didn’t matter. “Arthur, say something!!” She yelled down.

\--

He was halfway through opening the door when he thought he heard something and paused, only for Vivi’s voice to carry down to him once more. Oh. She must have noticed…

“I’m okay, Vivi!” He called back. “I’ll be back up in a few minutes!” 

Arthur finished twisting the lever and groaned a little as he lifted the heavy metal hatch up. Sliding down by his feet, he dropped the rest of the way into the elevator with a small huff, shielding his eyes from the sudden burst of light after being in pitch black for so long. It was strange how empty and seemingly unprotected this place was. Of course, they probably didn’t expect anyone to find the doors, see no elevator, and rappel down the side of the shaft. It sounded kind of silly if he thought about it. But Lewis was down here.

A quick search was all it took to find the elevator’s buttons for the floors. He pressed them once, twice, then three times, but the elevator seemed adamant in staying still. Maybe whatever controlled it was elsewhere, so the Order of the Blessed Agonies could control who came and went.

Of course, they probably didn’t expect someone who dabbled in all things machinery to end up down here either.

Arthur grinned a little before reaching into one of his vest pockets and producing a worn looking screwdriver. “Don’t worry, little guy. I’ll get this thing running in no time!” He glanced back up after a second of thought. “It’d be good if you could my lookout, or if you can get up to Vivi and have her pull up the rope. We don’t want to lose it when the elevator starts going up…”

Quickly the Deadbeat nodded and flew back up through the ceiling. It grabbed the rope on the way up so it wouldn’t get lost and tried to go as fast as it could to make it back. Arthur couldn’t be left alone for too long in this place.

Vivi perked when a low burble reached up from the elevator shaft and the tiny ghost handed her the end of the rope. It gave a few chirps, probably trying to tell them Arthur’s plan, and then quickly flew back down. 

Well that was…curt. Too bad they couldn’t understand what it was saying.

In the elevator itself, Arthur got to work on having it up and running in their favor. If this thing was rigged so only an outside source could move it, then Arthur would just have to make his own source. There had to be some trick to it. The Deadbeat flew in again with one accomplished mission before poking its head out into the hallway.

The power was going in. That much Arthur knew. Otherwise the elevator wouldn’t work at all, and those glaring lights wouldn’t be working. So electricity was no problem. It was the controls that seemed to be somewhere else. For the moment, at least.

If he could find the wiring that sent control of the lift to a different location, and reroute it back to the elevator buttons…

Then they couldn’t stop him from using it without coming in and fixing his alterations.

Easily, he unscrewed the metal plate from the wall and examined the wiring. It might’ve looked far too complex to the average guy, but with his knowledge in machinery, he could already pinpoint some of the functions based solely on the coloring of the wire and what it connected to inside. If there was one thing Arthur was confident with, it was machines: this wouldn’t take too long at all.

From the door, the Deadbeat squirmed. Something was different. There still wasn’t anyone there in the hallway and it didn’t feel right…

Without warning a loud and inhuman wail rang out throughout the bottom floor, including into the elevator. The Deadbeat shrieked in pain as well, diving back in and clinging to Arthur with a sob. Whatever they were doing to Lewis, it was affecting his Beats as well. 

Arthur nearly dropped his tool as he stiffened. There was no doubt in his mind that had been Lewis with the reaction his Deadbeat was having. He stroked the little ghost twice with jittery fingers as a wave of nausea hit him at the thought of what they might be doing. “I’m sorry. I-I’ll fix this, I promise.” Quickly, he ducked his head in the hole he’d made into the elevator’s inner workings and forced himself to focus. Just find the thing that gave the cultists remote access, and move the wires to the buttons.

It only took him about three minutes, with how determined and focused he was on the task. It was a tiny box with a blinking red light, and as soon as the wires were removed and tied to the keypad in the elevator, the power blinked for a moment. Standing up and pushing the metal plate to cover the inner workings, but not bothering to screw it back on, he pressed the open door button, breathing a sigh of relief as the elevator complied. He paused for a moment, considering trying to get to Lewis while Vivi and Mystery were shuttled down. The elevator might be slow, and the longer they left Lewis with these guys…

His stomach churned just thinking about it.

Swallowing, Arthur shook his head. If they wanted to succeed, they’d have to work as a team. Running off on his own, no matter how much he wanted to, wouldn’t solve anything, and might even make more problems. Arthur pressed the button to send the lift to the ground floor before moving and unplugging the camera in the corner for good measure, just in case someone was watching, and then pocketed his screwdriver. 

During the time he had been fixing the elevator, the Deadbeat had let go of its companion and fell to the ground, writhing in agony. Arthur reached down and picked up the tiny ghost, holding it against one of his shoulders as he stroked at its back. Hopefully some comfort would help it…

He really wished this lift would move faster.


	7. Chapter 7

Vivi and Mystery were taken aback when they heard something moving in the shaft. Gears turning, Arthur must have found the elevator and gotten it working. Vivi grinned and took a few steps back as they waited for the car to reach their destination. This would make things much easier.

They watched as the elevator finally came into view and the doors opened. Vivi almost launched herself at Arthur. “You made it! And you even got the elevator to us! Arthur, you’re amazing!” But mostly she was just happy he was alright. Now she more than understood Lew’s worrywart tendencies. It was tough feeling so worried!

But she paused when she saw the clingy Deadbeat and it let out another whimper of pain. “Oh no…what happened to you, little guy…?”

Before answering, the pink blob flopped itself into Vivi’s arms and clung to her next, mewling some explanation they couldn’t understand. It was obvious enough though that these two hadn’t heard that scream of pain from downstairs. The Beat was directly reflecting Lewis’ condition.

“Arthur, what happened down there?” Mystery asked as he came trotting up and then motioned to the elevator. “Is this thing safe to use?”

“The elevator is perfectly safe.” He voice was grim, and his leg was shaking from a mix of worry and impatience. Lewis needed them now. “Come on and get in. I’ll explain what happened on the way down.”

Once the others were shuttled in, he jammed the button for the basement level. The lift whirred to life once more, and they began their decent. Arthur crossed his arm and tapped his foot at the pace. It wasn’t slow, but after what he’d heard…it felt far too sluggish for his tastes.

“The rope was too short, but the Deadbeat was able to…glide me down to the top of the elevator. I used the hatch to come in and I rerouted control of the elevator from an external source to these buttons. We can use it when we need to get out of here too.” He knew he was somewhat stalling, and sighed before running a hand through his hair. “While I was fixing it, I…I heard Lewis. Guys, I don’t know what they’re doing to him, but we have to stop it. They’re _hurting_ him.” His hand tugged at his hair again and he swallowed. “That’s why the Deadbeat is how it is right now. We need to get Lewis out of here, fast.”

Almost perfectly timed with his last words, the lift doors juddered open, revealing the off-white walled hallway of the lower basement. It was well lit by florescent lights, and Arthur gripped at his metal hand tightly. “Do…do you think it can still lead us to Lewis?” He didn’t want to push the Deadbeat, especially while it was in pain, but the only way they could really help it was if they found Lewis and put a stop to this cult’s actions.

Luckily they didn’t have to wait long for an answer. As soon as Vivi stepped into the hallway, the Deadbeat squirmed and wriggled its way out of her arms, flying as fast as it could down the hall with a strangled cry. “Follow it!” Mystery exclaimed before giving chase, Vivi and Arthur right on his trail.

It felt so eerie down here… Everything was dead silent (no pun intended) and there was nobody to be seen. Even with the Beat making as much noise as it was, nobody came to check it out. Something was horribly wrong.

Those thoughts left her when they finally caught up. This room had some type of holding cell, completely walled off from the rest of the room with a window to see inside and an automatic locked door. But that wasn’t what held Vivi’s attention.

There, curled up in a shivering ball in the corner of the cell and seven other tiny ghosts holding onto him, was Lewis. The Deadbeat that led them there phased through the wall to cling to its master and Vivi thought she’d faint from relief but there was no time for that. “Lewis!!” She called, running over to the window.

Immediately the ghost jerked his head up at the familiar voice, dead eyes glistening with tears, and Vivi felt sick. He wasn’t in skeleton form or even his regular living form. A large and familiar gash was on the side of Lew’s cheek, some kind of blood trickling down from it. Vivi didn’t have to be a genius to figure out Lewis was hiding his chest for a reason.

This was his true form; the moment he died…wounds and all. They had only seen it once, by complete accident, and Lewis had made extra sure they never had to see it again. Lewis only took this form when he was severely weakened and had no choice. Unfortunately…this was one of those times.

Arthur was right behind Vivi, and his heart dropped at the sight of Lewis’s face. He’d seen it once before like that, and it made his stomach roll. It was gruesome, but that wasn’t the problem. They’d seen plenty of ghosts in that death-form: no, it was seeing the damage on Lewis that made it so wrong. And he knew how much Lewis hated when they saw him like this. How if he had enough strength, he wouldn’t remain in that form. With the scream that could only have been Lewis’ before…this place was _hurting_ him.

“V̷…̶V̛i…̸?” Lew’s voice was raspy and almost incomprehensible. He didn’t like to talk in this form for obvious reasons as well. "A͝rt͞h̵ur...͏?"͡

They needed to get to him. **_Now._**

Arthur glanced at the door. It was some kind of electronic lock. He’d never seen one like this before and he ran his right hand over he metallic grooves of the lock’s plating. Sure, he’d never messed with a lock quite like this before, but he could do this. There was only one door in, so really, it was their only chance.

“O-okay.” His voice was shaky and he swallowed before forcing it to steady. He only succeeded marginally. “I-I’m going to try to pick this lock. We’ll be there for you in a minute, Lewis. Just hold on.” He turned as he began to fish a few tools out of his vest pockets. It looked like Mystery had gone into the hall, and he spared a quick look at Vivi. She’d need to keep talking to Lewis. 

She was smart enough to know that on her own, though, so he didn’t bother saying anything. Instead using his Phillips-head to undo the metal casing before taking out a flat-head and prying it the rest of the way off, leaving a tangled mess of wires behind. Alright. A few of those wires he could figure out the function of. He had this.

…Maybe. 

Vivi kept talking. It felt like it was the only way to keep them all sane at this point. Lewis looked so scared and defeated. “Lewis, can you come closer?”

The ghost shook his head. “C͡…͘c͝a̵n’͠t̸ ̵m-move̸…̷it ̕hurts͢…”̛ ́She felt her heart break as she strained to understand the garbled mess Lewis had just spoken. That’s right, his lungs had been pierced when he died. No wonder he could barely speak. Oh when she found the sick bastards that did this… “D͟-d͞i̸d…Bass͞ ͘l͢e͡ad y̕o̢u he͢r̕e̵…̢?̴”

“Y-yeah,” Vivi replied once she deciphered her boyfriend’s words. “We found him and he brought us straight to you, Lewlew.” At one point Lewis had told them all the names of his Deadbeats. The only problem was telling them apart. Two of them left Lewis’ side, one with a slightly more jagged tail and the other with a tail that flowed like water, to cling to Arthur and Vivi respectively, begging and pleading with them to help their master.

“Hę…̀s͡houl̛d͢n’t ̡h́a̴ve͞…̴” ̸Lewis choked out, betraying his Deadbeats’ pleas. “̕You n̨-̵n͏e͘e̢d͝ ̵t͠ǫ ͢l͢e͡avé…”

Vivi looked appalled. “Like hell we’re going to leave you here!”

“Th̷-tḩe̴s͏e peo̡ple ar̡e d-̸d͡a͜ng̷er̕ous̕…!”̴ Magenta eyes flashed with horror. “An̡d ̀the̸r̸ȩ’͝s…s̷-͘s͢o͏m͟e͜t́h̴i̵n͜g̨ ̢ęls̢e ͏her͜e͝…͏!̀ ͡T͘heý’ll ͘ _hh́hg̨-_ …h͝-hur̀ţ you ͟t-̡t-̵t́oo!͝”

Arthur could only keep half of his attention on their conversation as he fiddled with the wires hanging from the door. There was a Deadbeat on his shoulder, which he vaguely recognized as the one that he talked to sometimes, but right now his focus was primarily on the locking mechanism. He was delayed a few moments from his diverted attention, but once it registered what Lewis had said, he shook his head before clipping one of the wires. “L-Lewis. It doesn’t matter what’s down here! We’d never leave you behind, especially not in a place like this.”

“Yo͘u do͜n͢’́t ͘un͝d͠erst̢an̨d…!̴”͏ ́Lewis crackled out. “͞Th̕i̧s ̸t̨hi͘n̨g͝ ̷ìs…n̵-̕nn͞nǫt̀…”̶ ̴He trailed off, clutching his chest with a groan of pain. Once again he curled up, shielding himself from anything and everything and just wanting to hide.

Arthur ignored him and rearranged a few of the wires and their connection points before pulling two of them out to complete the circuit. Hopefully this would work…

The ends of the clipped wires sparked wildly for a moment, but instead of a green light flashing on the plastic part above and the sound of the door unlocking, it blipped red before dying completely. Arthur tried the wires again, but not even a single sparked jumped from the cables. He stared at the mess silently for a moment before banging his hand on the door. “Shit! I shorted the fuse!” He tried the door, and the handle jiggled uselessly. He had effectively sealed Lewis inside. That’s what they got for trusting him with something so important.

Arthur ran a hand through his hair and tugged at the strands on the back of his neck. “I-I’m sorry. I can’t open it anymore. I…” He trailed off, however, as he stared through the window. Not through it, at it.

What was that phrase? When life closes a door, it opens a window. Maybe, with enough force…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The whole idea with Lewis' "true form" being the form of how he looked when he died is all ectoimp's idea. And yes, permission to use it was asked and given.


	8. Chapter 8

“St-stand back, Vivi…” He waited and kept gesturing her further back, until he was sure she was far enough away that she wouldn’t accidentally get hurt. Once satisfied, he took a deep breath took a solid stance. He then threw as much force into a swing at the glass with his metal hand as he could, using the weight of his body behind the momentum of the strike as well. 

The glass didn’t break, but he just came back again for another swing.

The loud and sudden noise snapped Lewis out of it. He stared at Arthur and Vivi winced at each hit. But she couldn’t help but admire Arthur a little. That robotic arm of his was certainly useful on this mission. First the elevator shaft and now this… She wasn’t glad that Arthur had lost his arm, but they wouldn’t have gotten this far without it. Arthur was one of the most resourceful people she knew and she couldn’t be more proud of him.

By the sixth one, cracks began to spiderweb out from where his fist was connecting with the pane. It had to be pretty thick, but he just had to keep trying…

But the longer he tried breaking the glass, the more worried Vivi got. His arm was sparking in protest. It was almost like hitting a brick wall. Just what in the world was that glass made of? “Arthur stop!” She called after the tenth hit. “You’re gonna-!”

She was cut off when the glass finally shattered with his next hit. The arm wasn’t in the best of shape but it looked like Arthur could still use it as he broke away all the lasting debris. She was about to ask if he was alright but his mind was elsewhere.

Using the metal hand, Arthur wiped the debris from the now window-less hole in the wall, breaking any shards of glass that were still sticking up or down from the window so they wouldn’t actually catch and tear clothing or skin. When the opening was clear of debris, he turned towards Vivi. “Let me boost you inside. Lewis needs somebody, and that should be you. I’ll wait for Mystery so I can help him through and then I’ll join you.” Besides, while she was helping Lewis, he could get some of the glass fragments out of the joints of his arm.

“…Okay.” She didn’t want Arthur to sell himself short again, hoping he didn’t think Lewis didn’t want to see him too, but Lewis needed her now. With Arthur helping her in, Vivi was by the ghost’s side in an instant, bringing him into a hug. She didn’t care about his form even as Lewis desperately tried to hide it away. “We’re here, Lewis…we aren’t going to leave you…”

“́V͝i͡v̡ì…͏”̕ Lewis sobbed. “It hur͠t͞s̸,̢ V̸iv̶i…”͡

She gently held him and ran her fingers through his hair. “Shhh…”

“͜…̴ìthurt͡sithu̷rt̀siţhu̶r̢ts…”͏ 

“Don’t worry, we’ll get you out of here and then it won’t hurt anymore…”

Sometimes it was easy to remember just how young Lewis really was. He was only twenty-one when he died, the youngest out of all of them, and yet he had already suffered so much… Him and Arthur both.

Arthur ground his teeth as he pulled chunks of glass out of his arm. This part didn’t hurt: sure, the arm was sparking and a little damaged, but that wasn’t important. All that mattered was that they could get to Lewis now. But hearing him through the opening was still painful. God, what did those monsters _do_ to him?

Mystery padded in a few moments later with a large sheet in his mouth. He watched for a second at Arthur picking out glass shards from his arm. Well at least it was obvious what had happened. “T’cver hm,” Mystery huffed through the blanket in his mouth, nudging Arthur’s leg.

Arthur smiled at him and ruffled his fur with his real hand. His voice was subdued, but it was no mystery why, so he didn’t bother trying keep his tone upbeat. “Good thinking, Mystery.”

Walking over to the window, he looked in on the two of them, and he frowned at how bad this was. Lewis didn’t deserve this. “Hey Vivi. Mystery grabbed this for you. It might help a little.” He waited until she could grab it and passed it to her. When the fabric was spread over Lewis and the floor, he moved to pick up Mystery gently before moving him into the cell. It was a small drop, but he doubt that’d bother the dog, and hopefully the already laid-out fabric would keep the dog from accidentally finding a piece of glass with his exposed paws. 

After Mystery was situated inside, he turned around and took a few minutes to pull any remaining shards out of the arm. Aside from a harder time bending the fingers and the wrist, it seemed to be fine, though from the rattling inside the metal, a few slivers of glass had likely made their way inside between some of the plating. He’d have to take care of that later. Finally, he turned back to the opening and awkwardly slipped inside, lifting himself up by the arms and getting a leg in. He prayed he hadn’t missed any glass as he wriggled his other leg inside, and dropped into the room. 

Once his feet were on the floor, he slid down on the opposite wall from them into a sitting position and watched as Vivi comforted Lewis. He counted the Deadbeats to make sure they were all there before patting one of Lewis’s covered knees very softly. “We’ll get you out of this place, Lewis.” He made the promise with as much certainty as he could muster. He let Vivi help him more, since she was better at it anyway, and he tried to stroke at the Deadbeats and give them a little bit of comfort too. If they were a part of Lewis, maybe it would help…

Some of the tiny ghosts went to Vivi but most of them went to Arthur, particularly the one with the jagged tail whom Lewis had named Soprano. She had been the first Deadbeat to reach out to Arthur, to listen and comfort. Now their roles were quite reversed.

Arthur scratched at Soprano’s head. While he knew all of the Deadbeat’s names, he really couldn’t tell much of a difference between them, especially now. But with the time he spent with Soprano, he’d come to recognize her by the jagged tail she had. He tried to comfort all of the Deadbeats that made their way to him as best he could, letting them float up and flop onto him wherever they wanted like a small group of cats.

But Vivi wasn’t having any of this distance. With Mystery in Lewis’ lap, she gently tugged on Arthur’s vest when he was close enough. “Come here, you dweeb…” Her smile tried to be as lighthearted as possible but Lewis needed comfort from all his friends. 

Arthur went rigid when he felt hands on his vest, but he didn’t struggle against Vivi as she dragged him closer to the others. And Lewis didn’t hesitate to lean on Arthur once he could, hoping the other wouldn’t mind. Still, the weak smile Arthur shot at Vivi wavered from nerves and from fear for the situation in general. Lewis leaning on him made Arthur’s tension grew worse, but after a moment he forced himself to relax and lean back. He definitely didn’t want Lewis thinking he was reacting to his current form. He hated it, but he could still handle seeing and touching it. This was Lewis, after all. He didn’t want to get in the way or make things awkward, but it’d be easy to misinterpret that as discomfort from how Lewis looked right now, which was the last thing Arthur wanted. 

They stayed there for a few minutes until Lewis had calmed down. Vivi gently wiped away the tears rolling down Lew’s face and kissed his cheek, not even caring about the blood. It wasn’t real. “Come on, big guy…” she started while tugging on her boyfriend’s arm. “Let’s get you outta here.” They’d come back for the cult members later, this time with an army of police, but for now they needed to get Lew to safety.  
The ghost seemed to have other plans however. He didn’t move an inch. “͝Cań…̡c͜-ca̢n̴’͢t…͡m͘ov͠ȩ…̷ C̕an’t͟ ̕l-̴ļe͝a͞ve y̢e͟t…”̀

Vivi didn’t understand. Lewis was more than ready to leave before. “Why not? Lewis, we have to go! Those other freaks can wait but we need to get you out of this place.” Arthur listened silently as Lewis and Vivi spoke, and the worry he felt only seemed to coil tighter in his chest as Lewis didn’t budge. 

“̶N͞-̡n̴ǫ,̀ n̶ot…ńo̷t͘ ye̷t͞…”͡ ̡Lewis was cut off with some sort of hacking noise. This was the closest to feeling alive a ghost could get…the moment just before their death. It was awful. “̛T̷h̴-͘ţh́ey h̕a͟ve my͠…̀m̶y̕…͜”͘  


And then he froze, as did all the Deadbeats. The silence stretched for just a few seconds before Lewis clutched his chest in absolute agony and let out another wail of pain. He was joined by eight other voices, making Vivi, Arthur, and Mystery cover their ears immediately. “H-HEL̴P! ͟I̸T͟ **h̘̺̐U̾̾̿̊͏͕̪̘̫̭̞̠Rͧ̽T̮̯̤ͨ͗̊̿̂ͨͥS̵̍̒ͧͥ̆ͬ!͚̤̜̽ͨ͒̂̚ͅ!͇̳͓̝͕͖̊ͬ͗̅ͅ!̩͡"̵͙̍̀͗ͧ̐**

It felt like forever before the cries died down and Lewis and the Beats collapsed onto the cold, steel floor into shivering balls. And it felt like even longer before anybody else could lift themselves up after that. Vivi and Arthur’s ears were ringing and Mystery felt lightheaded.

But he knew what was wrong. “I was afraid of this…” the not-dog whimpered out, going over and nudging Lewis with his snout. The ghost had been covering his chest for more than one reason, and when it dawned on them all, their stomachs only sunk lower. “They have his anchor…that’s how they’re hurting him.”


	9. Chapter 9

Arthur unplugged his ears and ran his hands through his hair. He chewed on his lip harshly as he opened his eyes to see how bad Lewis and the Deadbeats looked. He didn’t have anything to offer, but he placed his hand on Lewis’s shoulder that wasn’t touching the floor. They had to fix this, no matter what it took. “Th-then we have to get it back.”

He stumbled over to the opening and looked out. “Th-they can’t be far if Lewis is here. And m-maybe they don’t know we’re here, either. We can figure out where Lewis’s anchor is and get it back.” Arthur looked over at Mystery. “Me and you, we can find it and try to retrieve it.” 

Mystery nodded eagerly and Arthur lifted him gingerly to set him outside the opening. It took a few seconds longer to get his hand to bend the right way, and when he pulled back there was a faint pop and a small spark from the metal before he began to start climbing out the window himself. “Vivi-” He glanced her way for a moment. “-y-you should stay with Lewis. He needs someone to take care of hi-!”

She was right in his face the moment he glanced back, glaring hard. “Are you crazy?!” She exclaimed, gritting her teeth. “Arthur, you already climbed down an elevator shaft to get us all the way here. There’s no way I’m letting you put yourself in danger like that again! I could’ve…” Her gaze dropped, tears starting to form at the corner of her eyes. Her voice was quiet. “I could’ve lost the both of you…the same way…”

She shook her head, wiping the tears from her eyes. “So no. I’m going to look for his anchor with Mystery, not you, and that’s final. Don’t argue with me on this, alright?” She was supposed to be the leader here, and though she cared for Arthur deeply, he was not ordering her around when it came to this. Her leadership had taken them to some dark places but…she couldn’t let Arthur walk into something he wasn’t prepared for. Not again. “You stay here with Lewis. Like you said, someone should be there for him.” Her eyes trailed over to Lewis who was silently weeping on the ground, curled up into a shivering ball. Her heart broke at the sight.

Some small pained squeaks lightened the tension slightly as a few Deadbeats were crawling their way across the floor to them. The jagged and water-like tails made it obvious who they were. “Besides…I think she wants you to stay here too, Artie.” Soprano crawled over to Arthur and clung to his leg desperately while the other one, Treble as Lewis had called him, clung to Vivi. She gently picked him up. Hopefully he could lead her to the locket.

She didn’t wait for Arthur’s response, going over and kissing the downed Lewis on the forehead, uttering some soothing words, before pushing herself over the broken window with minor difficulty. There was no room for debate on this.

“Alright Mystery, you ready?” The not-dog stared at her for a few seconds, mulling over something, before nodding. “Treble? Can you lead us to Lewis’ heart?” The response was weak but it was affirmative. Vivi smiled a little before looking back at Arthur. “Take care of him, okay? We’ll be right back!” And the three of them were off before Arthur could protest.

“B-but Vivi-!” It was obvious that she wasn’t going to listen to any disagreement, but he had to try. He knew Vivi could handle herself perfectly fine, and he didn’t doubt her capabilities in the slightest. But Lewis needed his girlfriend, not him, and he could be helpful and actually do something about getting the anchor.

Still, Vivi didn’t really give him the opportunity, using her authoritative voice to keep him from pressing her too hard. Plus she didn’t leave much room for disagreement, what with the way she pushed herself out the opening, and marched off with Mystery and the Deadbeat before he really had a good chance to argue. And once she was away from sight, he halted trying to go after her, because as much as he’d rather Vivi help Lewis while he handled the more dangerous part, he refused to leave Lewis alone after what he’d been through.

Besides, he was having motor issues moving his prosthetic now, and the sparking wasn’t good either…it’d be better if he took the time to fix it now, just in case they would need it later on.

Sighing, Arthur wiped at his face with his good hand before scratching at Soprano’s head and picking her up before and moving to sit by Lewis. Once the Deadbeat was situated in his lap, his metal arm stroked her somewhat jerkily while his real one slowly came to rest on the top of Lewis’s shoulder. He didn’t want to make this worse by patting his back. Or his front. Neither of those were the best idea with Lewis as he was currently. “H-hey, big guy…”

The silent weeping didn’t cease but Lewis visibly relaxed when he felt Arthur’s hand on his shoulder. It took some time but eventually he managed to put his (bloodied) hand over the other. At least she sheet was covering it so Arthur couldn’t see.

They were quiet for a few moments, listening to the disturbing silence, only broken by the occasional pained cry from the Deadbeats. Arthur gathered as many as he could near him, and tried to comfort them with gentle petting. Finally, he spoke again. “We’re gonna get you out of here, Lewis. I promise. A-and Mystery and Vivi are tough as nails. They’ll get your anchor back. I’m sure of it.” He rubbed gently at the shoulder he was touching and leaned against Lewis a little more, despite his position on the floor. “It’s going to be alright. We’re going to get you through this, I promise.”

“͜T͟h-th̀ank y͠o̢u͘…͢Art͝h͏u̢r…”̶ Lewis’ voice was so quiet compared to the horrible scream he let out just a few minutes ago. All of the Beats let out a collective sigh. The pain was starting to fade.

Arthur relaxed somewhat when the Deadbeats released the sigh and the time between pained sounds seemed to be stretching further and further apart. That was good, right? They were feeling better, so that meant Lewis was too, right? He hated how quiet Lewis was, and how hard it was to understand him, but when he pieced together the words he squeezed his shoulder gently. “Anything for you, man.”  
Arthur sat in relative silence next to Lewis for a few minutes. He stroked the Deadbeats on his lap and at his side with his free arm. He wished he could think of something that would help Lewis.  
Vivi would know what to say.

“I'͡m͝ s-̵s͢o͡rry..̴.́” Came another whimpered break of silence. Arthur slowed his petting of the Beats to put all of his focus into what Lewis was saying. “̶Ì k-kno̶w̨ ýóu ͠hate ̸i̛t..̷.w͘h̢en..̴.whe̵n I ͡l͏-̵l̷o͘ok͏ ĺi͢ke͘ t͞his͜.͢..” He was disgusting; he knew. The real him wasn’t something he could show anyone, not even his parents or his closest friends. Quickly he took his hand away. Arthur probably wouldn’t want that on him.

It still took him a few seconds to decipher the words, but when Lewis’s hand began to move away, Arthur grabbed it with his own and pulled it back. “Lewis, buddy… you’ve got nothing to be sorry for.” Arthur scratched at his cheek with his prosthetic. “I can’t lie. I do hate this. But that’s mostly because I know how much it hurts you.” 

He squeezed the hand in his. He didn’t care if he got blood on his own. It wasn’t real and it didn’t matter even if it was. “You’re one of my best friends, Lewis. We’ve had to help ghosts in their death-states before. Really, the only thing that bugs me about this is what it means to you.” And maybe it bothered him that a large part of why Lewis even suffered with this form was from his own actions, but Arthur also knew now wasn’t the time for dwelling on that. Lewis needed help, and he could push his own discomfort and guilt aside for that. “So… no apologies for something you can’t control, alright, big guy?”

Instinctively Lewis uncurled a little once Arthur grabbed his hand. He was helping, no matter what Arthur thought about himself. Lewis always took comfort through touches, be it hugs or holding hands or even just simply leaning against someone else. And while it had taken a few weeks for Lewis to get used to Arthur touching him again, he had worked through his fear, and he liked to think they were better than before. Now if only Arthur could think the same thing.

Lewis made a noise that almost sounded like a strangled chuckle. His other hand reached over and grasped onto Arthur’s so he couldn’t pull away. Not yet. “̢Y̡-y͏ou̕ ͞sho͠uld̢ ̶li͜s̛te̡n͟ t-to y͢o͝ur own̵ ̷adv-̷v̢i̸ce, Art͝i̕e…̴"̴ the ghost rasped out as he brought himself up onto his knees.

Pausing, Lewis looked down to Arthur’s prosthetic. It did look a little banged up but at least he could still somewhat use it. "Y̴o̡u lo̡oked̕.͠..̴p̡r̀et͝ty̶ co͠ol̢ b͞-back t͞her̷e.͜.͡."̧ If he was going to be like then then he might as well try to lighten up the mood. He didn’t like that Arthur still seemed to be nervous around him. 

The prosthetic jerked slightly as Arthur moved it to rub at the back of his neck and he gave a sheepish smile. “Thanks, Lewis. I should’ve been able to figure out that door lock though. It would’ve made things easier on us, at least.”

"̶I̷s͏ y͡o͝u͡r a͜-a͡r͘m͘ ̶ok͏ay͝?̸"̴ Lewis’s eyes seemed to follow the movement of the arm, and it looked like he was studying it when he dropped it back into his lap. One look told him why, though. The prosthetic did seem a bit dinged up from earlier, and when he tried to flex the fingers a few of them had a hard time following the movement. Bending it at the elbow to further test the movements, he heard a faint electric pop. One of the wires must’ve come undone inside. Arthur would definitely have to fix that before he started trying to use the arm too much.

“I think some of the glass got inside between the plates. Some of it might be wedged between the joints.” Arthur tried not to go too into detail. He didn’t want to overwhelm Lewis with technical jargon, especially when he couldn’t be too comfortable as it was. “And a wire might’ve come loose. But those should be easy fixes. The dents will have to wait until I can get to my workbench, but I have a few tools handy that might help with the other stuff.”

He reached inside his vest with the prosthetic and produced a few tools before pausing. He’d need his hand back to work on it, but he wanted to help Lewis too. Arthur knew him well enough to understand touch helped though. Maybe he could do both. “H-hey Lewis. I’m going to fix my arm and it should only take a few minutes but…well, it’s kind of hard to do one-handed, you know?” He gave a weak smile. “It’d really help if you sat behind me and held it steady while I worked… I-Is that okay?”

Lew’s bloodied face visibly brightened and he nodded. Arthur hesitated before removing his real hand from the ghost’s. He stood and stretched before dropping himself directly in front of Lewis and directing the man’s hands to certain points on the arm to keep the prosthetic steady. Arthur leaned slightly back into him after a moment and drew his knees up to lay the arm on like a makeshift table. “Thanks, Lewis. This will help a lot.” He hoped it would give Lewis some comfort to have someone close and in contact with him too.

Silently, he lifted one of the tools and set to work, slowly opening the plates of his arm.


	10. Chapter 10

The bottom floor of the elevator was very small, almost like a bunker, and it went in a complete circle. To make matters worse, Vivi swore the walls were watching them. And she couldn’t stop thinking about Lewis… She had never seen him in that kind of pain before. At his death, it was quick before her memory of it was completely wiped. She had seen Arthur like that before however…

Her poor boys. She felt so helpless.

Before Vivi knew it, they were right back at the elevator again Treble seemed to think that whoever had Lewis’ heart was on the move. She gritted her teeth. “Is this asshole just trying to confuse us?”

Mystery sighed and trotted beside Vivi as the Deadbeat continued to lead them down the hall. “That is a likely possibility. Perhaps they are aware of our presence down here, and wish to avoid an altercation that would result in the loss of Lewis’s anchor.”

His ears swiveled as he thought for a moment before he glanced at Vivi. “If the cultist is trying to avoid us, then perhaps we should change our method of hunting them down. This complex is circular, so we should split up. You and the Deadbeat go one way, and I can take the other. If they are keeping to the main corridors, then one of us will run into them, and the other will be along shortly for assistance.”

Vivi nodded. “Alright. If we don’t find him then there’s gotta be some other way he’s getting around. We’ll have to check the rooms. Treble’s still not doing too great but…” She looked down at the tiny ghost in her arms and gently pet its antenna. “Okay. Meet back at the elevator in twenty minutes if you don’t find anything.”

They split in separate directions, Vivi more determined than ever. Some of the doors were locked so there was a possibility that whoever had Lewis’ anchor was hiding in those, but Treble wasn’t pointing any of them out. She wished they had time to scout this place out a little better before giving chase but with Lewis on the line…

A hissing noise from her shoulder caught her attention. Treble has seen something and Vivi practically snarled herself when she saw what it was. “Hey!” She called. A man in a red robe froze at her words. This was the first sign of life they saw down here and judging by her ghostly companion, the guy they were looking for. He was only still for a second before dashing off into another room. “Get back here you freak!”

Unfortunately his head start on her was enough of a lead as he ran into the nearest room and slammed the door behind him. “Damn it!” The cultist had locked the door. She banged against the door a few times and huffed before turning to the Deadbeat on her shoulder. “Treble, can you get in there and unlock the door for me?” She asked desperately. Treble nodded and disappeared inside. A few seconds later the door unlocked and Vivi was greeted with a pitch black room. Just great.

Treble chirped wildly at her in a panic. “What? What’s wrong?” The ghost could see in the dark. If it was the cultist then he wouldn’t be in a panic, he’d be hissing…

With trepidation, Vivi reached over hoping to find a light switch. The lights flickered on and the room looked so be some sort of infirmary. But that wasn’t what held her attention.

She screamed.

\--

This setup worked out for both of them. Lewis had always been curious about Arthur’s arm, even if he didn’t quite understand it or how it worked. But being able to watch him like this and just see Arthur look so passionate about something, helped more than the mechanic probably realized. It had been a while he had seen the other like this… Lewis just wished his form wasn’t spoiling it but at least this way Arthur didn’t have to look at him. And the sheet across his chest hid all of the holes from view.

He watched as Arthur took parts of his arm off, glass shards falling out. Rewiring a few things. It was utterly fascinating to him and the pain was soon forgotten, or at least dulled. Even the Deadbeats had floated over for a look, Soprano curling up around Arthur’s shoulders while the others held onto their master to watch.

He kept silent however, knowing his voice was just as bad as his “body”. And he didn’t want to distract Arthur and for him to lose that look of contentment on his face.

And Arthur wasn’t lying, despite how complex it looked, it really did only take him a few minutes to fix as much as he could. Lewis just hoped none of that actually hurt him. But even when he finished…Lewis didn’t have the urge to let Arthur go. His hold slackened a little, just in case Arthur did want to leave, but didn’t completely release him. “Ar̸t͞hu͞r͡.́.̡.̡”

He was cut off when a noise from the door distracted him. The door was broken, in fact it had short circuited to the point where it couldn’t be opened again. So who was-?

The door suddenly opened and the words died in Lewis’ destroyed throat. A man stood there, head completely devoid of hair and clothed in blood red fabric but it wasn’t the robe that the cultists were wearing. He stood down at the two of them with hardened yet completely blank eyes. “͠Y-͢yoų!” Lewis exclaimed, once again tightening his hold on Arthur protectively. All seven of the present Deadbeats enlarged and began to hiss at the figure, showing their claws and teeth. “̶Wh̵ỳ are͡ ̧you ̢bac̀k̴ ̢h̸ere?”

“You have a way to move now, yes?” The man didn’t seem to have any trouble deciphering what Lewis was saying and he stepped out of the way of the door. “I suggest you get going. Your companions are going to need you.”

This was no cultist. If he was, why would he be letting them go? This was someone else entirely.

Not a second later he spoke did a scream ring out for all of them to hear. If possible, Lewis would have paled. _“V̡įv̕i̢̕͞!̴͝"̀͡_

Arthur didn’t have time to question who the man in red was, or how Lewis knew him. Vivi was screaming, and making sure she was okay was the most important thing. Just as much as she didn’t want to lose him, Arthur didn’t want to lose her, and that hadn’t been a surprised cry; there was genuine fear in that scream. They had to get to her now.

Arthur scrambled to his feet and took a few strides towards the exit before stopping. Lewis was too far from his anchor. He was too weakened and couldn’t move on his own without it. Arthur wasn’t about to leave him alone down here, especially since there was a strange man in red that Lewis obviously didn’t like. But there was nothing that said he couldn’t tow Lewis along, especially if he was moving Lewis closer his anchor. Arthur ran back and grabbed Lewis’s hands with both of his, pulling on him until he was at least floating above the ground.

The sheet fell away, but he didn’t react or much care that it didn’t cover him, and he met Lewis’s eyes and squeezed his hands before pulling him through the now-opened door and towards the entrance to the hallway. He was a little slower now; Lewis was almost weightless as a ghost, but he still had some sort of mass. It was like running with an unfurled parachute. He could still sprint, but the weight would hinder his movement.

Still it didn’t take but a few seconds to reach the exit, and yanked it open and dragged Lewis after him. He wasn’t sure exactly where Vivi was, but she needed them and that was really all that mattered.

The man in red watched with zero expression as the two “prisoners” escaped to where the scream had come from. And as Lewis turned his head to look, he was gone.

~

Mystery padded through the white hallway quietly, listening for any sounds such as the scuffing of feet on tile. Without hands, it would be next to impossible to open any of the doors, but his own path brought him next to a large set that appeared to need two people as it was. Considering the dead quiet of this place and how quickly they moved, it was likely that whoever had their hands on Lewis’s locket was alone, which made it just as probable that he wouldn’t have the ability to move into that room either. Still, he paused and stared at the door for a few moments, narrowing his eyes. Something felt…strange about it.

His ears stood up when he heard the sound however. Vivi had screamed. It wasn’t a pained one, like the one he remembered from the cave, but it was still one laden with terror. Wherever she was, whatever she was facing, Vivi needed assistance. That much was clear.

Still, Mystery paused as he felt something behind him, from the double doors. It was a presence of sorts, though it was muted, as if there…yet not. Mystery turned and moved towards it slowly, trying to sense what exactly it was.

It almost felt like a ghost, and if there was a smell to describe pain, than whatever this was positively reeked of it. That, and death. It felt like it passed through him, moving in the direction that Vivi was in. The aura, as it passed through him, felt slimy and viscous and dark, like some kind of black ichor that slithered its way across his skin. Mystery shivered. Whatever kind of presence that was, it was decidedly dark, and he didn’t much care for the fact that it was down here.

After a moment, however, it seemed to dawn on him where the thing was headed. In _Vivi’s_ direction. Immediately, he began to run. Whatever that was, _he couldn’t let it reach her first!_


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kirby: This is the chapter where shit hits the fan :P
> 
> Tristan: Honestly, this was one of my favorite scenes to write!
> 
> Gore warning in the chapter.

It didn’t take long to find Vivi, thankfully. She had collapsed onto her knees still in the doorway, staring with horror into the room. Treble was desperately shaking her arm to get her to snap out of it. “V̵iv͢i!͡” Lewis called again settling next to her once Arthur had pulled him close enough. She looked terrified, and Vivi didn’t scare easy. “͏What's w-̸w̷r̶o̧n̵g?̡ ̕W̴ha͏t ̡happene͡d?͜!"̷

Even if Vivi understood what Lewis said she wouldn’t have answered. All she did was point into the room slowly. The boys followed her gesture…and a part of Lewis was almost glad he was dead, otherwise he might have gotten sick.

He had seen his own body after his death. Heck, his weakened form reflected it almost exactly. That didn’t make this any easier.

Arthur wished he hadn’t followed the direction her hand pointed in. The bodies of two women in the far corner had thick slashes decorating their chests, blood spilled out and soaking the clothes they wore. The one’s lab-coat could have been white, but the only indicator was on the far fringes of the uniform, where the blood hadn’t soaked into the fabric. The one with the lab coat had a nametag that could barely be seen with all the blood coating it. Had she worked here? Had they all worked here and there was a mutiny? What the hell was going on?!

He couldn’t focus on them anymore, because all the red was reminding him of something else.

Turning quickly from the sight didn’t help. Right next to the door was a man, judging by the body type. He had grey dress pants and leather shoes on, as well as a white dress shirt, a skinny necktie, and a black waistcoat. There was a grey hat in his lap, the style reminiscent of older attire, like that from the 50’s.

Oh, and his head had been crushed, the face unrecognizable and bent in on itself in a grotesque display. His stomach churned and he swallowed bile as he looked at all the red, and he looked away swiftly. All the blood was seeping into his thoughts, and the room had a faint tint of green now and his arm was starting to ache. He knew what that would mean if he didn’t stop dwelling on it. He had to focus on something else.

He dropped next to Vivi and started counting the individual threads of her sweatshirt. It was repetitive and mindless, but it’d help. And anything was better than looking at those bodies. This, at least, would make sure he stayed grounded.

They had seen plenty of ghosts before. Dead bodies on the other hand, especially ones as mutilated as these, were a completely different story. The last time Vivi had seen something as horrible as this was…

Well, Lewis had erased her memory for a reason. He wished he had the sheet back. His current form wasn’t helping in the slightest. He couldn’t let her or Arthur see him like this any longer and backed up.

Wait. He could move! His anchor was close and his eyes trailed over to the door on the east wall of the infirmary. A closet perhaps? But the ghost knew his heart was inside. He didn’t think, instinct had completely taken over, and Lewis lunged right for the door and disappeared inside.

The movement drew Arthur and Vivi’s attention, however. Him being near was helpful. It reminded them that Lewis was still with them, that what happened was in the past, and while his form reminded Arthur of what he’d seen that night when he looked down, it was also a stark reminder that they were past that place too. If Lewis left, it’d be easier to slip backwards.

Belatedly, as Lewis passed through the door, it dawned on Arthur that Lewis was moving. His anchor. It had to be in that room!

His legs were somewhat shaky, but he pulled himself to his feet, and reached down to help Vivi. Getting out of this room had to be better for both of them –all three of them really- than thinking too hard about what could’ve happened to result in such a…such a massacre. Besides, getting Lewis out needed to be their priority. At least until Lewis had his heart back and they’d found Mystery. Then they could take the time to think about alerting the authorities and doing what they could for these people.

He had begun to pull Vivi up when an echoing scream, much like the one they’d heard earlier, rang out from behind the door. Suddenly he wasn’t pulling Vivi. She was all but dragging him as they both ran for the door and flung it open. Lewis was curled on the floor inside, shaking and weeping once more. A bearded man in a red robe stood over him, wielding in his hand a golden heart. It beat erratically as he crushed down on it, and cracks could be seen spider-webbing beneath his fingers along the glass surface.

The man looked surprised at their sudden appearance for a moment, but after a moment an expression of aberrant smugness slid over his features. “Let me pass.”

Vivi and Arthur stood their ground, blockading off any chance of escape. The room, from what they could see of it behind him, seemed to be some kind of storage room. Vivi growled as he clenched her fist. “Hell no! You’re trapped in here, and you’ve got nowhere else to go. Just give us the heart. Or you’ll regret it.”

Arthur tried to stand taller and sent his most intimidating glare, but the man in red merely laughed in response. “I have done to myself far worse to than you could even dream up,” he sneered. “And I wouldn’t count your chickens if I were you. You forget, I’m the one with leverage in this situation.” He crushed the heart harshly in his grip, an agonizing, echoing shriek bouncing off the walls as he did. Arthur barely staved off the urge to lunge at him. “Let me pass or I might accidentally press just a tad too hard. Wouldn’t it be a shame if he were to disappear…?”

Arthur and Vivi held their ground for a few more moments, but another squeeze accompanied by a ghostly wail made them take a few steps back. They needed to get the heart from him, but not if they lost Lewis in the process. The cultist’s infuriating smile grew ever wider as they complied, and he took a step forward. “That’s what I thought.”

The shadows of the room behind him, though, drew their attention away from the man for a moment. Flickering in and out of view as the room seemed to darken was a man. Most likely at least. He was taller than Lewis, long and gangly as if he’d been stretched out beyond where he was meant to grow, and a white mask covered his face. He wore what looked like a black, belted trench-coat that trailed all the way down, hiding even his feet, and a bloodied, Victorian-style cravat hung from his neck. Specks of red dotted his outfit, appearing in more frequency near the front. Whispers seemed to fill the room faintly calling out, though Arthur and Vivi were too focused on the being to really pick out what they murmured.

The tall man towered behind the red-robed cultist and, before anybody could react, a weapon seemed to produce from nowhere, like a scythe with four blades on the head. It flickered into his hand and found its way into and through the chest of the man in red.

He gurgled first, gasping wetly as blood began to slither from the wound in thick red streaks. He was lifted up by the weapon and dangled in the air from one blade, and he slowly turned to face the thing.

“M…my…pr..prince…” The cultist’s words were garbled and wet, and as he spoke blood made its way from his mouth. “….W… **w h y…?”** The tall man made no response, and after a few moments, the cultist fell limp, more like a rag-doll impaled by the blade than a man.

Vivi covered her mouth in an attempt to muffle her own scream and she clenched her eyes shut. It felt like she was going to be sick. Arthur didn’t scream; the sound had died in his throat. It was beyond horrifying: he really had no words to describe what this was. It was blood-freezing and his heart felt like it was in a vise and blood was pounding in his ears and all he could see was red. Red robes red blood red floor red stains so much red all over-

But then gold flashed, and his eyes locked on the movement. Lewis’ heart was still in the cultist’s hands, but as he expired the grip began to loosen, and it slipped from his grasp towards the floor. It barely looked like it was holding together, with all the cracks that patterned its surface, and if it reached the ground, it was liable to break. And if that happened…

Arthur didn’t think twice. He dived to the ground where the anchor was falling, throwing out his hands to catch it. But nothing landed in his open palms. He looked up to see long, slender fingers curled around the cracked, golden anchor, and the masked man brought it up to his face, as if to inspect it, despite the lack of slits for eyes. His weapon flickered and vanished, and the body it had impaled fell to the ground with a thump. Arthur stared at the heart in the thing’s hand, before he heard Lewis. There was panic bleeding into his already ruined voice, and he moved between it and them. “T-that̨’͏s t͢h͝e̴ man…th̨e ̷one ̕I t͜o̵ld ͜yo̢u̷ ͘a͡-̨abo͝u̡t͡…! ̕You ͝h̢a͟ve͝ to̡ go͢…̸ R͠un! No͜w͠!” His voice was distorting with fear, but there was no mistaking the plea in his tone.

“Not without you!” Arthur and Vivi didn’t move, eyes still on the heart in the strange man’s hand, and they didn’t so much as shift, even as the door behind them slid open. Mystery bounded inside, only to freeze at the sight and smell of decay, and the masked man who reeked of death and pain. He took a few steps forward, and his eyes locked on the anchor in his hand.

The golden heart was cracked, but those seemed to be fading away as the tall man brushed his fingers over the glass, the gesture almost tender. But where his finger touched, blackness followed, and soon the anchor was the color of tar, an endless black. Dancing over the dark were a multitude of pulsating, luminescent red lines, as if tattooed where the cracks had been on the heart previously.

There was loud shrieking from the hallway and before anyone could blink, eight tiny ghosts were pulled past them and sucked into the distorted heart against their will.

Lewis’ continued pleas at them to run cut off, acting as if he hadn’t even felt the terror his Deadbeats had felt just a second ago, and a strange guttural growl that sounded so wrong from his usually-gentle friend pulled Arthur’s attention away from the anchor, and he looked up at Lewis from his place on the floor in surprise. The ghost had shifted somehow from his death-state, but instead of his living one, he was now in his skeletal form. His sockets held no irises, but a glaring red began to glow throughout them and, despite the lack of eyes, Arthur had a feeling that he was looking at him.

“L-Lewis…?” His voice was tentative, and the sockets narrowed in response. Flames began to dance and flicker along Lewis’s clenched fists. Arthur froze at the sight, but something clamped down on his pant leg and dragged him forcefully back. Only moments later, flames and a blackened scorch mark decorated the floor where he’d been lying. He turned to see Mystery let go of his leg with his teeth, and Vivi helped him to his feet.

Both of them started pulling and pushing Arthur towards the exit, and he fought back, even as Lewis turned towards them, his movement almost mechanical. “Please! We can’t leave him behind! Not again! We can save him, I know it!”

More than anything Vivi wanted to stay. She wanted to lunge right at whatever held Lewis’ anchor captive and just beat the shit out of it. But she couldn’t. She and Mystery managed to drag Arthur out of there despite his insistence on staying behind. “We can’t!” Vivi hissed. “Arthur, he’s not himself! He’ll kill us!” This was the second time Arthur had been dragged out when Lewis had needed help…but both times there was nothing he could do. Vivi felt so useless.

Lewis…it made her sick to think she was leaving him in the hands of that murderous creature but there was nothing she could do. That wasn’t Lewis anymore. He was being controlled. She knew he would never hurt Arthur on his own accord.

Vivi tried to ignore the sense of déjà vu.


End file.
